Patrick making run for Lt. Gov

By David Saleh Rauf :
June 27, 2013
: Updated: June 27, 2013 10:00pm

State Sen. Dan Patrick cites recent Senate meltdown as a lack of leadership.

Sen. Dan Patrick is chairman of the Senate Education Committee.

AUSTIN — Conservative firebrand and Houston Republican state Sen. Dan Patrick ended months of speculation Thursday and jumped into the 2014 race for lieutenant governor, using the opportunity to blast the current officeholder for failing to pass controversial abortion bills.

Patrick, one of the most outspoken members of the Senate, joins an already crowded field trying to unseat Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst. Along with the tea party favorite and radio talk show host, Texas Land Commissioner Jerry Patterson and Agriculture Commissioner Todd Staples are challenging Dewhurst in the GOP primary next year.

“The people of Texas sense it is a time for change,” said Patrick, labeling himself an “authentic conservative.”

At his announcement in Austin, Patrick vowed to refrain from launching an “attack campaign.”

Moments later he opened fire on Dewhurst for the recent Senate meltdown that resulted in a package of controversial anti-abortion bills failing while the nation watched online.

“It was pretty obvious to the world who was watching ... that what happened Tuesday night was a lack of leadership,” Patrick said.

“The Senate floor was out of control. The gallery was out of control. There seemed not to be a plan,” he said. “This is what happens when you don't have leadership.”

During the 2011 session, Patrick and Dewhurst butted heads over a bill the Houston Republican was pushing to prevent excessive pat-downs by the Transportation Security Administration. The two later appeared to make amends when Patrick threw his support behind Dewhurst's failed U.S. Senate bid. Dewhurst, a millionaire businessman, lost the GOP primary to lesser-known Ted Cruz.

The circus in the Senate this week could be a flash point for Dewhurst's challengers.

The morning the anti-abortion bills failed, Patterson sent a message to supporters saying the collapse was the direct result of Dewhurst losing control of the chamber, and he urged a changing of the guard.

“Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst must go,” Patterson wrote. “I strongly believe he has lost his grip on the reins of the Senate and his horse has run wild.”

In his role as lieutenant governor, the state's second-highest elective office, Dewhurst is Senate president and responsible for calling the shots on the floor.